Systems and methods for client-side management of recurring payment transactions

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods disclosed herein for the client-side management of recurring payment transactions. An account holder can interact with a consumer computing device, such as a smart phone or tablet computer, to provide billing parameters for recurring payments to a merchant. The billing parameters can be updated over time by the account holder.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The systems and methods described below relate generally to the field ofrecurring financial transactions. More particularly, the systems andmethods relate to the field of client-side management and control ofrecurring financial transactions.

BACKGROUND

Payment card transactions are used for a great number of purchases andsales between merchants and cardholders. A payment card transaction caninvolve a number of parties, including an account holder who possessesthe payment card, a merchant, an acquirer processor, an issuerprocessor, issuer financial institution and a card association network.Millions of such transactions occur daily at merchants using a varietyof payment card types, such as credit cards, debit cards, prepaid cards,and so forth. Some of these transactions are based on a recurringpayment schedule that is managed by the merchant. While recurringbilling arrangements offer a certain level of convenience for theaccount holder, once a recurring payment billing arrangement is formed,the account holder may have difficulty modifying or terminating thebilling arrangement.

SUMMARY

In an embodiment, the present disclosure is directed, in part, to acomputer-implemented method. The method comprises displaying a graphicaluser interface on a display of a consumer computing device that isexecuting an application. The application is associated with an acquirerprocessor. The method also comprises receiving a selection of a merchantthrough an interaction with the graphical user interface, wherein theacquirer processor processes payments on behalf of the selectedmerchant. The method also comprises receiving billing parameters,wherein the billing parameters comprise a merchant identifier, a paymentamount, a recurring payment schedule, and payment vehicle data. Based onthe recurring payment schedule, transaction data is electronicallytransmitted to the acquirer processor, wherein the transaction datacomprises the merchant identifier, the payment amount, and the paymentcard data.

In an embodiment, the present disclosure is directed, in part, to arecurring payment transaction system. The recurring payment transactionsystem comprises a consumer computing device comprising a processorexecuting instructions stored in memory, wherein the instructions causethe processor to display a merchant list on a graphical user interfaceon a display of the consumer computing device, receive a selection of amerchant from the merchant list, wherein an acquirer processor processespayments on behalf of the merchant and receive billing parameters,wherein the billing parameters comprises a payment amount, a recurringpayment schedule, and payment vehicle data. Based on the recurringpayment schedule, transaction data is electronically transmitted to theacquirer processor, wherein the transaction data identifies the merchantand comprises the payment amount and the payment vehicle data.

In an embodiment, the present disclosure is directed, in part, to anacquirer processor computing system comprising a processor executinginstructions stored in memory, wherein the instructions cause theprocessor to enroll a merchant into a recurring payment computingplatform for accepting client-originated payment vehicle payments. Theacquirer processor computing system also comprises instructions thatwhen executed cause the processor to process transaction data receivedfrom a consumer computing device, wherein the transaction data isassociated with a recurring billing arrangement between an accountholder and the merchant, and wherein the transaction date identifies themerchant, a payment amount, and a payment vehicle. The acquirerprocessor computing system also comprises instructions that whenexecuted cause the processor to communicate with a card issuerassociated with the payment vehicle to seek payment authorization andcommunicate an authorization response message received from the cardissuer to the merchant.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

It is believed that certain embodiments will be better understood fromthe following description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which like references indicate similar elements and inwhich:

FIG. 1 depicts a block diagram of an example payment systemincorporating various recurring payment management functionalities.

FIG. 2 depicts an example simplified graphical user interface displayedon a consumer computing device.

FIGS. 3A-3C depict an example simplified graphical user interface duringa new recurring payment configuration process.

FIGS. 4A-4B depict an example simplified graphical user interface duringa modification of an existing recurring payment process.

FIG. 5 depicts an example simplified graphical user interface displayinga recurring payment summary.

FIG. 6 depicts example process flows which can be executed by variouscomponents of the system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 schematically depicts a computing device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure will now bedescribed to provide an overall understanding of the principles of thestructure, function, and use of systems and methods disclosed herein forthe client-side management of recurring payment transactions. One ormore examples of these non-limiting embodiments are illustrated in theselected examples disclosed and described in detail with reference madeto FIGS. 1-7 in the accompanying drawings. Those of ordinary skill inthe art will understand that systems and methods specifically describedherein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings are non-limitingembodiments. The features illustrated or described in connection withone non-limiting embodiment may be combined with the features of othernon-limiting embodiments. Such modifications and variations are intendedto be included within the scope of the present disclosure.

The systems, apparatuses, devices, and methods disclosed herein aredescribed in detail by way of examples and with reference to thefigures. The examples discussed herein are examples only and areprovided to assist in the explanation of the apparatuses, devices,systems and methods described herein. None of the features or componentsshown in the drawings or discussed below should be taken as mandatoryfor any specific implementation of any of these the apparatuses,devices, systems or methods unless specifically designated as mandatory.For ease of reading and clarity, certain components, modules, or methodsmay be described solely in connection with a specific figure. In thisdisclosure, any identification of specific techniques, arrangements,etc. are either related to a specific example presented or are merely ageneral description of such a technique, arrangement, etc.Identifications of specific details or examples are not intended to be,and should not be, construed as mandatory or limiting unlessspecifically designated as such. Any failure to specifically describe acombination or sub-combination of components should not be understood asan indication that any combination or sub-combination is not possible.It will be appreciated that modifications to disclosed and describedexamples, arrangements, configurations, components, elements,apparatuses, devices, systems, methods, etc. can be made and may bedesired for a specific application. Also, for any methods described,regardless of whether the method is described in conjunction with a flowdiagram, it should be understood that unless otherwise specified orrequired by context, any explicit or implicit ordering of stepsperformed in the execution of a method does not imply that those stepsmust be performed in the order presented but instead may be performed ina different order or in parallel.

Reference throughout the specification to “various embodiments,” “someembodiments,” “one embodiment,” “some example embodiments,” “one exampleembodiment,” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature,structure, or characteristic described in connection with any embodimentis included in at least one embodiment. Thus, appearances of the phrases“in various embodiments,” “in some embodiments,” “in one embodiment,”“some example embodiments,” “one example embodiment, or “in anembodiment” in places throughout the specification are not necessarilyall referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particularfeatures, structures or characteristics may be combined in any suitablemanner in one or more embodiments.

Throughout this disclosure, references to components or modulesgenerally refer to items that logically can be grouped together toperform a function or group of related functions. Like referencenumerals are generally intended to refer to the same or similarcomponents. Components and modules can be implemented in software,hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. The term “software”is used expansively to include not only executable code, for examplemachine-executable or machine-interpretable instructions, but also datastructures, data stores and computing instructions stored in anysuitable electronic format, including firmware, and embedded software.The terms “information” and “data” are used expansively and includes awide variety of electronic information, including executable code;content such as text, video data, and audio data, among others; andvarious codes or flags. The terms “information,” “data,” and “content”are sometimes used interchangeably when permitted by context. It shouldbe noted that although for clarity and to aid in understanding someexamples discussed herein might describe specific features or functionsas part of a specific component or module, or as occurring at a specificlayer of a computing device (for example, a hardware layer, operatingsystem layer, or application layer), those features or functions may beimplemented as part of a different component or module or operated at adifferent layer of a communication protocol stack. Those of ordinaryskill in the art will recognize that the systems, apparatuses, devices,and methods described herein can be applied to, or easily modified foruse with, other types of equipment, can use other arrangements ofcomputing systems such as client-server distributed systems, and can useother protocols, or operate at other layers in communication protocolstacks, than are described.

For simplicity, the description that follows will be provided byreference to a “payment vehicle,” which generally refers to any type offinancial alternative to currency. As is to be clear to those skilled inthe art, no aspect of the present disclosure is specifically limited toa specific type of payment vehicle. Therefore, it is intended that thefollowing description encompasses the use of the present disclosure withmany other forms of financial alternatives to currency, including creditcards, debit cards, smart cards, single-use cards, pre-paid cards,electronic currency (such as might be provided through a cellulartelephone or personal digital assistant), and the like. Payment vehiclescan be traditional plastic transaction cards, titanium-containing, orother metal-containing, transaction cards, clear and/or translucenttransaction cards, foldable or otherwise unconventionally-sizedtransaction cards, radio-frequency enabled transaction cards, or othertypes of transaction cards, such as credit, charge, debit, pre-paid orstored-value cards, or any other like financial transaction instrument.A payment vehicle can also have electronic functionality provided by anetwork of electronic circuitry that is printed or otherwiseincorporated onto or within the payment vehicle (and typically referredto as a “smart card”), or be a fob having a transponder and an RFIDreader.

Some consumers, referred to herein as account holders, have a need toutilize recurring payment transactions to periodically transmit funds toa merchant through a series of payment vehicle-based transactions. Suchrecurring payment transactions can be associated with, for example, apurchase plan, a subscription, membership plan, or installment paymentplan between the merchant. The account holder, however, may wish tomaintain some level of control over the recurring payment transactions.In accordance with the present disclosure, and as described in moredetail below, an account holder can initiate and control paymenttransactions to a merchant from a consumer computing device. Throughinteractions with a consumer computing device, an account holder canupdate the billing parameters (i.e., amount, frequency, cardinformation, etc.). The account holder can also optionally cancel futurerecurring payment transactions. Accordingly, an account holder can enterinto recurring billing arrangements with a variety of merchants with theability to subsequently manage the future payments to that merchant.

FIG. 1 depicts a block diagram of an example payment system 10incorporating various the client-side recurring payment managementfunctionalities. In the example payment system 10, an account holder 16is associated with at least one payment vehicle 18 that is issued by anissuer financial institution 14. As is to be appreciated, the accountholder 16 may be associated with a plurality of different paymentvehicles, such as debit cards, prepaid cards, credit cards, and soforth. The issuer financial institution 14 can be any of a variety offinancial institutions that is capable of issuing a payment vehicle toan account holder. Generally, the payment vehicle 18 can be used tofacilitate payment to a merchant 42 for a purchase transaction. It is tobe appreciated that the merchant 42 can be any type of merchant orservice provider, such as a brick-and-mortar merchant, an onlinemerchant, a mobile merchant, a kiosk, or any other type of merchant ordevice configured to receive payment cards from account holders as aform of payment.

In the payment system 10, a consumer computing device 12 that isassociated with (i.e., operated by) the account holder 16 can run anapplication for communicating with an acquirer processor 22, themerchant 42, as well as other entities, over a network 56. Theapplication can be stored in memory 52 and be executed by a processor50. In FIG. 1, the application is schematically shown as recurringbilling engine 54 for the purposes of illustration. An exampleapplication is a web browser. In a configuration, consumer computingdevice 12 is a cell phone, smart phone, tablet, laptop, or othersuitable computing platform having wireless connectivity to a network56. In a configuration, the application is a specialized applicationthat is available from the Apple™ iStore™, or another “app store,” fordownloading onto and executing on an Apple™ iPhone™ or iPad™ or othertype of smart phone or networked device. In some embodiments, theconsumer computing device 12 can be a desktop system, gaming system, awearable computer, a networked television, or another suitable computingplatform, whether mobile or non-mobile. Furthermore, the network 56 canbe any suitable wired or wireless network, or a combination of both,whether private or public, and including, but not limited to, theInternet and telephony based networks.

In the system 10, the user or account holder executes an application ontheir consumer computing device 12 to communicate with the acquirerprocessor 22 to initiate and manage recurring payment transactions withthe merchant 42. In one embodiment, the application is configured atleast to cause the consumer computing device 12 to send an authorizationrequest message to the acquirer processor 22 to initiate a paymenttransaction. The consumer computing device 12 may or may not send aseparate request or notification to the merchant 42.

In one embodiment, the consumer computing device 12 includes a magneticstrip reader for receiving payment vehicle information, such asinformation from the payment vehicle 18. In another embodiment, theconsumer computing device 12 includes a contactless reader, such as aradio frequency identification (RFID) reader, a near fieldcommunications (NFC) device configured to read data via magnetic fieldcoupling (in accordance with ISO standard 14443/NFC), a Bluetoothtransceiver, a WiFi transceiver, an infrared transceiver, a laserscanner, and so forth. In some embodiments, an account holder 16 canprovide payment vehicle information through inputting the informationvia an input device, such as a keyboard. As is to be appreciated, theconsumer computing device 12 can include various input/output devices,as is known in the art. For example, the consumer computing device 12can include buttons, a touchscreen, a display screen, a remote control,a handheld controller, and so forth. Further, the consumer computingdevice 12 can have a network interface (not shown), as is known in theart.

During a recurring payment transaction event, the consumer computingdevice 12 can send an authorization request 20 for a payment vehicletransaction to the acquirer processor 22 that processes payment vehicletransactions for the merchant 42. As is to be appreciated, additionalintermediary entities, such as one or more payment gateways, can assistwith the handling and routing of the authorization request 20, or otherrelated messaging. For the purposes of illustration, such intermediaryentities may be considered part of the acquirer processor 22. Theauthorization request 20 can include identifying information from thepayment vehicle 26, such as a BIN number, an expiration date, and afirst and last name of the account holder, and a PIN, for example, asmay be provided by the account holder 16 during a recurring paymentconfiguration process. The authorization request 20 can include alsoinclude purchase related information, such as a merchant identifier anda purchase amount. While a single authorization request 20 isillustrated in FIG. 1, a series of authorization requests 20 can be sentover time, as specified by the account holder 16 during the recurringpayment configuration process. For example, authorization requests 20can be sent weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly, or on any other paymentschedule.

A payment processing computing system 24 at the acquirer processor 22can receive the authorization request 20 from the consumer computingdevice 12. The payment processing computing system 24 can translate theauthorization request 20, if necessary, and can provide theauthorization request 20 to a payment network 26. The payment network 26can be, for example, a network of a credit card association affiliatedwith the payment vehicle 18. Non-limiting examples of credit cardassociations include VISA, MASTERCARD, DISCOVER, and AMERICAN EXPRESS.The authorization request 20 can then be provided to a paymentprocessing computing system 28 at an issuer processor 30. In response toreceiving the authorization request, and based on the type of paymentvehicle 26, the payment processing computing system 28 may provide theauthorization request 20 to the issuer financial institution 14. Usinginformation from the authorization request, the issuer financialinstitution 14 can associate the purchase transaction with an account 31of the account holder 13 held by the issuer financial institution 14.The issuer financial institution 14 can then send an authorizationresponse 32 which can either approve or deny the transaction. Theauthorization response 32 can be provided to the payment processingcomputing system 28 at the issuer processor 30 and then provided to thepayment network 26. The authorization response 32 can then be providedto the payment processing computing system 24 at the acquirer processor22. Upon receiving the authorization response 32, the payment processingcomputing system 24 can send either an approval message or a denialmessage to the merchant 42 and/or the consumer computing device 12 tocomplete the purchase transaction. If the purchase transaction isapproved, it can be posted to the account holder's account 31, withsettlement funds 46 eventually transferred from the account holder'saccount 31 to an account 44 of the merchant 42.

Transaction records can be stored in one or more locations within thesystem 10. In one embodiment, the transaction record can stored within atransaction data database 34 of the acquirer processor 22. Thetransaction data can be received by the transaction data database 34from various sources, such as the consumer computing device 12, themerchant 16, the acquirer processor 22, and so on. A plurality oftransaction parameters associated with the purchase transaction can bestored in each transaction record which can generally be used forsettlement and financial recordkeeping. While the transaction parametersstored in each transaction record can vary, example transactionparameters can include, without limitation, account number, card number,payment vehicle information, product information (such as product type,product serial number, and so forth), transaction amount, loyaltyaccount information, merchant information, transaction amount, responsecode, transaction date, transaction time, whether the transaction was a“card present” transaction, and so on.

As shown in FIG. 1, the acquirer processor 22 can include severalcomputer servers and databases. For example, the acquirer processor 22can include one or more web servers 38, application servers 36, and/orany other type of servers. For convenience, only one web server 38 andone application server 36 are shown in FIG. 1, although it should berecognized that the disclosure is not so limited. The servers can causecontent to be sent to the to the consumer computing device 12 and/or themerchant 42 in any number of formats, such as text-based messages,multimedia message, email messages, smart phone notifications, webpages, and so forth. The servers 36, 38 can comprise processors (e.g.,CPUs), memory units (e.g., RAM, ROM), non-volatile storage systems(e.g., hard disk drive systems), etc. The servers 36, 38 can utilizeoperating systems, such as Solaris, Linux, or Windows Server operatingsystems, for example.

The web server 38 can provide a graphical web user interface throughwhich various users of the system can interact with the acquirerprocessor 22. The web server 38 can accept requests, such as HTTPrequests, from clients (such as web browsers on the consumer computingdevice 12), and serve the clients responses, such as HTTP responses,along with optional data content, such as web pages (e.g., HTMLdocuments) and linked objects (such as images, video, and so forth).

The application server 36 can provide a user interface for users who donot communicate with the acquirer processor 22 using a web browser. Suchusers can have special software installed on their consumer computingdevice 12 that allows them to communicate with the application server 36via the network 56. Such software can be downloaded, for example, fromthe acquirer processor 22, or other software application provider, overthe network to such consumer computing device 12.

The graphical user interface provided by the web server 38 or theapplication server 36, as the case may be, can permit users via theconsumer computing device 12 104 to communicate with the acquirerprocessor 22 to initiation, configure, and manage recurring billingrelationships with one or more merchants. Through interactions with anapplication on their consumer computing device 12, the account holder 16can establish billing parameters for a recurring billing arrangement.Such parameters can be changed or modified over time. For example, theaccount holder 16 may wish to change the payment vehicle being used forthe recurring transaction, update information regarding the paymentvehicle of record, change the payment date, change the amount and/orcancel future recurring payments. Such changes or modifications can, insome circumstances, generally occur without requiring consent or otherinput from the merchant 42.

FIG. 2 depicts an example simplified graphical user interface 60 thatcan be presented on a display 56 of the consumer computing device 12.The graphical user interface 60 can be presented using hypertext markuplanguage (HTML) and Java scripts, or a dedicated applet or application,or any other suitable interfacing means as would be known or understoodin the art. The account holder 16 can be presented with a variety ofmanagement tools or options associated with recurring paymenttransactions. In the illustrated embodiment, the options are presentedas selectable graphical elements or icons, namely, an option to create anew recurring payment 62, an option to modify an existing recurringpayment 64, and an option to view a recurring payment summary 66. As isto be appreciated, the graphical user interface 60 illustrated in FIG. 2has been simplified for the sake of clarity.

FIGS. 3A-3C depict an example simplified graphical user interface duringa new recurring payment configuration process. This graphical userinterface can be displayed subsequent to the account holder 16activating the new recurring payment option 62 through interactions withthe application executing on their consumer computing device 12.Referring first to FIG. 3A, a plurality of merchant names are eachpresented as selectable graphical elements 62. Additional merchants canbe displayed if the “more” element 64 is selected. Generally, themerchant names identify particular merchants, such as merchant 42 (FIG.1), to which client-side recurring payment transactions can be directed.In some embodiments, the displayed merchants to the account holder 16include merchants that have enrolled into a recurring payment computingplatform of the acquirer processor 22. The graphical user interface 60can include a search feature for the account holder 16 to locate variousmerchants. In some embodiments, the presentment of merchant names isbased on geo-location using GPS functionality of the consumer computingdevice 12. In some embodiments, the application is merchant-specific sothis particular step is not required. In any event, the merchantspresented to the account holder 16 can be the merchants that have arelationship with the acquirer processor 22 and have establishedcommunication protocols to support the client-side recurringtransactions described herein.

Referring next to FIG. 3B, the graphical user interface 60 is shownsubsequent to the account holder 16 selecting “merchant A” from thegraphical user interface 60 shown in FIG. 3A. Once the merchant isselected, various billing parameters can be received from the accountholder 16. In the illustrated embodiment, the billing parameters includean amount 66, a start date 68, a frequency 70, and a payment vehiclenumber 72. As is to be appreciated, however, a wide variety of billingparameters can be used, such as a merchant category code (MCC) amerchant identification code (MID), and so forth. Additionally, whileFIG. 3B illustrates the billing parameters being inputted by the accountholder 16, in some embodiments, various billing parameters can bepre-populated or otherwise provided by other sources, such as by themerchant A.

FIG. 3C depicts an example simplified confirmation screen that can bedisplayed on the graphical user interface 60. Generally, theconfirmation screen can include a summary 74 of the recurring billingarrangement. The confirmation screen can also provide the account holder16 with various options, such as an option to accept the billingarrangement 76, an option to change the billing arrangement 78, and anoption to cancel the billing arrangement 80. Upon acceptance of thebilling arrangement, recurring transactions can be processed inaccordance with the billing parameters.

In some embodiments, the authorization messages are generated by themobile communicating device 12, as described above. In otherembodiments, the billing parameters are provided to the acquirerprocessor 22 such that the acquirer processor 22 can generate theauthorization messages in accordance with the billing parameters. In anyevent, the account holder 16, through interactions with the consumercomputing device 12, can provide some or all of the billing parametersand subsequently maintain control over the recurring paymenttransactions as time progresses.

FIGS. 4A-4B depict an example simplified graphical user interface duringa modification of an existing recurring payment relationship. Referringfirst to the graphical user interface 60 illustrated in FIG. 4A, such agraphical user interface can be displayed to the account holder 16 uponthe selection of the option to modify existing recurring payment 64 ofFIG. 1, for example. The graphical user interface 60 can display anindication of existing recurring payment relationships with variousmerchants 82. In the illustrated embodiment, the graphical userinterface 60 indicates that the account holder 16 is currently engagedwith recurring payment relationships with merchant x and merchant y.Additional merchants can be displayed if the “more” element 64 isselected. The account holder 16, through interactions with the consumercomputing device 12, can select which arrangement to modify. FIG. 4Bdepicts the graphical user interface upon the selection of merchant X.The graphical user interface 60 can provide a summary 86 of thecurrently active billing parameters. Through interactions with thegraphical user interface 60, the account holder 16 can then modify someor all of the billing parameters using a change option 88. In thisregard, the account holder 16 can provide information for a differentpayment vehicle, change the frequency, change the amount, or make avariety of other changes. Furthermore, should the account holder 16 wishto cease the recurring payment relationship, the account holder 16 canselect the stop of payments option 90. Therefore, the account holder 16is given the ability to easily modify, and if necessary cease, therecurring payment relationship using their consumer computing device 12.

Through interactions with the consumer computing device 12, the accountholder 16 can review recurring payment activity. FIG. 5 depicts anexample simplified graphical user interface displaying a recurringpayment summary 92. The graphical user display 60 of FIG. 5 can bepresented in response to the account holder 16 selecting the recurringpayment summary option 66 (FIG. 2), for example. The account holder 16can be provided with an overview of the various transactions that havebeen processed, including an indication of the associated merchant, thedata, the amount, and so forth. Additional transactions can be displayedif the “more” element 94 is selected.

FIG. 6 depicts example process flows that can be executed by system ofFIG. 1. The example process flows includes various steps or events thatare handled at the consumer computing device 12, the acquirer processor22, and the merchant 42. The merchant 42, at 100, transmits a merchantenrollment message to the acquirer processor 22. At 102, the merchantenrollment message is received at the acquirer processor 22. Additionalmessaging can occur between the acquirer processor 22 to enroll themerchant 42 into the recurring payment computing platform of theacquirer processor 22. Once enrolled, the merchant 42 can acceptclient-side recurring payments in accordance with the presentdisclosure.

At 106, a graphical user interface can be displayed on a consumercomputing device 12. The graphical user interface can be displayed, forexample, in response to the account holder 16 wishing to establish arecurring payment relationship with a particular merchant. At 108, aselection of an option to create new recurring payment is received. At110, a list of merchants is displayed on the consumer computing device12. The list of merchants can be provided by the acquirer processor 22and can include the merchants that have enrolled in the recurringpayment computing platform, such as merchant 42. At 112, a selection ofa particular merchant is received. At 114, billing parameters arereceived. The billing parameters can be received from a user of theconsumer computing device or other suitable data source.

At 116, based on the billing parameters that were received at 114,transaction data is transmitted to the acquirer processor 22. In someembodiments, the transaction data is submitted in an authorizationrequest. At 118, the transaction data is received at the acquirerprocessor 22. At 120, in accordance with payment processing protocol,authorization is sought through payment network communications. Suchcommunications can include various messaging between the acquirerprocessor 22 and a payment network 26, or other types of messaging asmay be based on the type of payment vehicle identified in thetransaction data. As is to be appreciated, the payment processing foropen-loop payment vehicles will differ from the payment processing forclosed-loop payment vehicles, for example. At 122, transactioninformation can be sent to the merchant 122. The transaction data isreceived by the merchant at 124. The transaction information can be usedby the merchant for record keeping, financial settlement purposes and/orcustomer tracking.

At 126, it is determined if a total number of recurring payments hasbeen completed. The total number of payments can be provided in thebilling parameters, for example. In some embodiments, the recurringpayments are perpetual such that there is not a total number ofpayments. If the total number of payment has been completed, at 128, therecurring payment relationship between the account holder and themerchant is ended. If the total number of payment has not beencompleted, it is determined at 130 is there are any changes to thebilling parameters. Example changes to the billing parameters caninclude the user of the consumer computing device 12 changing thepayment vehicle information, changing the payment amount, changing thefrequency, changing an end date, and so forth. If there have been nochanges, the process returns to 116 to submit the transaction data inaccordance with the billing parameters. If there have been changes tothe billing parameters, at 132, it is determined if the recurringbilling has been cancelled. If the recurring billing has been cancelled,at 128, the recurring payment relationship between the account holderand the merchant is ended. If the recurring billing has not beencancelled, at 134, the billing parameters are updated and the processreturns to 116 to submit the transaction data in accordance with thenewly updated billing parameters.

The processes described herein can be performed on or between one ormore computing devices. Referring now to FIG. 7, an example computingdevice 200 is presented. A computing device 200 can be a server, acomputing device that is integrated with other systems or subsystems, amobile computing device, a cloud-based computing capability, and soforth. The computing device 200 can be any suitable computing device aswould be understood in the art, including without limitation, a customchip, an embedded processing device, a tablet computing device, aconsumer computing device 12, a payment processing computing system 24,a recurring billing engine 54, a merchant 42, a payment processingcomputing system 28, a recurring payment computing platform, a personaldata assistant (PDA), a desktop, a laptop, a microcomputer, aminicomputer, a server, a mainframe, or any other suitable programmabledevice. In various embodiments disclosed herein, a single component canbe replaced by multiple components and multiple components can bereplaced by a single component to perform a given function or functions.Except where such substitution would not be operative, such substitutionis within the intended scope of the embodiments.

The computing device 200 includes a processor 202 that can be anysuitable type of processing unit, for example a general purpose centralprocessing unit (CPU), a reduced instruction set computer (RISC), aprocessor that has a pipeline or multiple processing capabilityincluding having multiple cores, a complex instruction set computer(CISC), a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specificintegrated circuits (ASIC), a programmable logic devices (PLD), and afield programmable gate array (FPGA), among others. The computingresources can also include distributed computing devices, cloudcomputing resources, and virtual computing resources in general.

The computing device 200 also includes one or more memories 206, forexample read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), cache memoryassociated with the processor 202, or other memories such as dynamic RAM(DRAM), static ram (SRAM), programmable ROM (PROM), electricallyerasable PROM (EEPROM), flash memory, a removable memory card or disk, asolid state drive, and so forth. The computing device 200 also includesstorage media such as a storage device that can be configured to havemultiple modules, such as magnetic disk drives, floppy drives, tapedrives, hard drives, optical drives and media, magneto-optical drivesand media, compact disk drives, Compact Disk Read Only Memory (CD-ROM),Compact Disk Recordable (CD-R), Compact Disk Rewriteable (CD-RW), asuitable type of Digital Versatile Disk (DVD) or BluRay disk, and soforth. Storage media such as flash drives, solid state hard drives,redundant array of individual disks (RAID), virtual drives, networkeddrives and other memory means including storage media on the processor202, or memories 206 are also contemplated as storage devices. It can beappreciated that such memory can be internal or external with respect tooperation of the disclosed embodiments. It can be appreciated thatcertain portions of the processes described herein can be performedusing instructions stored on a computer-readable medium or media thatdirect a computer system to perform the process steps. Non-transitorycomputer-readable media, as used herein, comprises all computer-readablemedia except for transitory, propagating signals.

Network and communication interfaces 212 can be configured to transmitto, or receive data from, other computing devices 200 across a network214. The network and communication interfaces 212 can be an Ethernetinterface, a radio interface, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface, orany other suitable communications interface and can include receivers,transmitter, and transceivers. For purposes of clarity, a transceivercan be referred to as a receiver or a transmitter when referring to onlythe input or only the output functionality of the transceiver. Examplecommunication interfaces 212 can include wired data transmission linkssuch as Ethernet and TCP/IP. The communication interfaces 212 caninclude wireless protocols for interfacing with private or publicnetworks 214. For example, the network and communication interfaces 212and protocols can include interfaces for communicating with privatewireless networks such as a WiFi network, one of the IEEE 802.11x familyof networks, or another suitable wireless network. The network andcommunication interfaces 212 can include interfaces and protocols forcommunicating with public wireless networks 212, using for examplewireless protocols used by cellular network providers, including CodeDivision Multiple Access (CDMA) and Global System for MobileCommunications (GSM). A computing device 200 can use network andcommunication interfaces 212 to communicate with hardware modules suchas a database or data store, or one or more servers or other networkedcomputing resources. Data can be encrypted or protected fromunauthorized access.

In various configurations, the computing device 200 can include a systembus 216 for interconnecting the various components of the computingdevice 200, or the computing device 200 can be integrated into one ormore chips such as programmable logic device or application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC). The system bus 216 can include a memorycontroller, a local bus, or a peripheral bus for supporting input andoutput devices 204, and communication interfaces 212. Example input andoutput devices 204 include keyboards, keypads, gesture or graphicalinput devices, motion input devices, touchscreen interfaces, one or moredisplays, audio units, voice recognition units, vibratory devices,computer mice, and any other suitable user interface.

The processor 202 and memory 206 can include nonvolatile memory forstoring computer-readable instructions, data, data structures, programmodules, code, microcode, and other software components for storing thecomputer-readable instructions in non-transitory computer-readablemediums in connection with the other hardware components for carryingout the methodologies described herein. Software components can includesource code, compiled code, interpreted code, executable code, staticcode, dynamic code, encrypted code, or any other suitable type of codeor computer instructions implemented using any suitable high-level,low-level, object-oriented, visual, compiled, or interpreted programminglanguage.

It is to be understood that the figures and descriptions of the presentinvention have been simplified to illustrate elements that are relevantfor a clear understanding of the present invention, while eliminating,for purposes of clarity, other elements. Those of ordinary skill in theart will recognize, however, that these sorts of focused discussionswould not facilitate a better understanding of the present invention,and therefore, a more detailed description of such elements is notprovided herein.

Any element expressed herein as a means for performing a specifiedfunction is intended to encompass any way of performing that functionincluding, for example, a combination of elements that performs thatfunction. Furthermore the invention, as may be defined by suchmeans-plus-function claims, resides in the fact that the functionalitiesprovided by the various recited means are combined and brought togetherin a manner as defined by the appended claims. Therefore, any means thatcan provide such functionalities may be considered equivalents to themeans shown herein. Moreover, the processes associated with the presentembodiments may be executed by programmable equipment, such ascomputers. Software or other sets of instructions that may be employedto cause programmable equipment to execute the processes may be storedin any storage device, such as, for example, a computer system(non-volatile) memory, an optical disk, magnetic tape, or magnetic disk.Furthermore, some of the processes may be programmed when the computersystem is manufactured or via a computer-readable memory medium.

It can also be appreciated that certain process aspects described hereinmay be performed using instructions stored on a computer-readable memorymedium or media that direct a computer or computer system to performprocess steps. A computer-readable medium may include, for example,memory devices such as diskettes, compact discs of both read-only andread/write varieties, optical disk drives, and hard disk drives. Anon-transitory computer-readable medium may also include memory storagethat may be physical, virtual, permanent, temporary, semi-permanentand/or semi-temporary.

These and other embodiments of the systems and methods can be used aswould be recognized by those skilled in the art. The above descriptionsof various systems and methods are intended to illustrate specificexamples and describe certain ways of making and using the systemsdisclosed and described here. These descriptions are neither intended tobe nor should be taken as an exhaustive list of the possible ways inwhich these systems can be made and used. A number of modifications,including substitutions of systems between or among examples andvariations among combinations can be made. Those modifications andvariations should be apparent to those of ordinary skill in this areaafter having read this disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method for client-sidemanagement of recurring electronic transactions, comprising: receiving,at an acquirer processor, registration messages from merchant systems,the registration messages registering merchants associated with themerchant systems into a recurring electronic transaction computingplatform; generating, at the acquirer processor, computer-executableinstructions which, when executed by one or more processors of aconsumer computing device, cause a graphical user interface to bedisplayed within an application executing on the consumer computingdevice; transmitting, by the acquirer processor, the computer-executableinstructions to the consumer computing device; determining, at theacquirer processor, a list of merchants available for processingrecurring electronic transactions based on the registration messages,the recurring electronic transactions being initiated by a consumerthrough interaction with the graphical user interface; transmitting, bythe acquirer processor, the list of merchants to the applicationexecuting on the consumer computing device; receiving, at the acquirerprocessor, a selection of a merchant among the list of merchants and aselection of a merchant category code (MCC) from the consumer computingdevice, the selections being made by the consumer through interactionwith the graphical user interface; receiving, at the acquirer processor,transaction data directly from the consumer computing device independentof the merchant systems, wherein the transaction data comprises amerchant identifier, the MCC, a transaction amount, a recurringtransaction schedule, and a transaction account number; andcommunicating with an issuer processor associated with the transactionaccount number to seek transaction authorization for the receivedtransaction data.
 2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,comprising: receiving a change to the recurring transaction schedule. 3.The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein the change to therecurring transaction schedule comprises a termination of all futurepayments to the merchant.
 4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,wherein the recurring transaction schedule is any a weekly paymentcycle, a monthly payment cycle, a quarterly payment cycle, and a yearlypayment cycle.
 5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, whereinthe recurring transaction schedule comprises a total number of recurringtransactions and a transaction amount for each recurring transaction. 6.The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein at least a portionof the transaction data is received from a user.
 7. A recurringelectronic transaction system, comprising: an acquirer processorcomputing system comprising a processor executing instructions stored inmemory, wherein the instructions cause the processor to: receiveregistration messages from merchant systems, the registration messagesregistering merchants associated with the merchant systems into arecurring electronic transaction computing platform; generatecomputer-executable instructions which, when executed by one or moreprocessors of a consumer computing devices, cause a graphical userinterface to be displayed within an application executing on theconsumer computing device; transmit the computer-executable instructionsto the consumer computing device; determine a list of merchantsavailable for processing recurring electronic transactions based on theregistration messages, the recurring electronic transactions beinginitiated by a consumer through interaction with the graphical userinterface; transmit the list of merchants to the application executingon the consumer computing device; receive a selection of a merchantamong the list of merchants and a selection of a merchant category code(MCC) from the consumer computing device, the selections being made bythe consumer through interaction with the graphical user interface;receive transaction data directly from the consumer computing deviceindependent of the merchant systems, wherein the transaction datacomprises a merchant identifier, the MCC, a transaction amount, arecurring transaction schedule, and a transaction account number; andcommunicate with an issuer processor associated with the transactionaccount number to seek transaction authorization for the receivedtransaction data.
 8. The recurring electronic transaction system ofclaim 7, wherein the instructions of the acquirer processor computingsystem cause the processor to receive a change to the recurringtransaction schedule.
 9. The recurring electronic transaction system ofclaim 8, wherein the change to the recurring transaction schedulecomprises a termination of all future payments to the merchant.
 10. Therecurring electronic transaction system of claim 7, wherein therecurring transaction schedule is any a weekly payment cycle, a monthlypayment cycle, a quarterly payment cycle, and a yearly payment cycle.11. The recurring electronic transaction system of claim 7, wherein therecurring transaction schedule comprises a total number recurringtransactions and a transaction amount for each recurring transaction.12. The recurring electronic transaction system of claim 7, wherein atleast a portion of the transaction data is received from a user.